Monday, 16 May 2011

Why No Lap Of Honour?

When did FA Cup-winning teams stop doing a lap of honour at Wembley?

The celebrations after the trophy lift on Saturday were fabulous: Tevez with the lid on his head, wearing a City flag like a Superman cape; Joe Hart covered in blue ticker-tape; Tevez and Zabaleta with the Cup and the Argentina flag in the goalmouth; Mancini showing off the silverware to the fans behind the goal.

But all the celebrations were at the City end. And there was a lot of jigging about and Poznaning but no running around with the trophy held aloft by two players at a time

But their view of the famous old trophy was confined to tiny flashes of silver seen from the other end of the stadium.

It didn't used to be like that. This clip from 1976 shows Southampton's victorious players, including future Blue Mike Channon, actually running around the old Wembley dog track so both Saints and Man United fans could pay their respects.

So when and why did it stop? Are today's players afraid they'll be abused by opposition fans? Is it seen as something that might incite angry losers? Or is it a tradition that's simply been forgotten?

If City had lost I would have still liked to see the trophy paraded at our end. It should be a guaranteed part of the £85-per-ticket Cup Final experience.